Y’all ever heard about the emo and post-hardcore scene in Mankato, Minnesota? As I understand it, in the first half of the ’90s the vibe in the area was similar to what was happening in Champaign/Urbana down in Illinois. The city’s reputation was such that many punk bands would stop there rather than Minneapolis/St. Paul. Were you there when Jawbreaker or NOFX or the Offspring played Marti’s? If you’re reading this post, there’s a nonzero chance you were!

Dead History is a band comprising five guys from Mankato and nearby towns like Sioux Falls, South Dakota and Appleton, Wisconsin — vocalist Brad Senne, guitarists Matthew Rezac and Brock Specht, drummer David Jarnstrom, and bassist John McEwen — all of whom have since moved to Minneapolis. Between them they’ve been members of such groups as Picturesque, Reach, Gratitude, Align, Floodplain, Story Of The Sea, BNLX, the Book Of Dead Names, Sunday Flood, and more. Way back in 2000, the five of them tracked some loosely shoegaze-y post-hardcore songs together under the name Dead History, but nothing ever became of the songs until Rezac ran into Jarnstrom in 2017. They decided to spruce up the old recordings and put them out as a self-titled album via Landland Colportage, the label that brought you Slow Mass and various Kinsella-related recordings.

Lead single “Sleep Safe” is out today. Speaking of Champagne/Urbana, if you loved that Hum reunion album last year and would be open to a gruffer, more accelerated take on that sound akin to Texas Is The Reason, this may well be the song for you. Dig into it below.

TRACKLIST:
01 “Pushing Friction”
02 “High-Wire Act”
03 “Empty Eyes”
04 “The Shallow End”
05 “Back to the Center”
06 “Sleep Safe”
07 “Telmex”
08 “Where Do We Hide?”

Dead History is out 6/11 via Landland Colportage. Pre-order it here.